LibriVox recording of Two Treatises of Civil Government, by John Locke.

The Two Treatises of Civil Government is a work of political philosophy published anonymously in 1689 by John Locke. The First Treatise is an extended attack on Sir Robert Filmer's Patriarcha, which argued for a divinely-ordained, hereditary, absolute monarchy. The more influential Second Treatise outlines a theory of civil society based on natural rights and contract theory. Locke begins by describing the "state of nature," and goes on to explain the hypothetical rise of property and civilization, asserting that the only legitimate governments are those which have the consent of the people.

Locke's ideas heavily influenced both the American and French Revolutions. His notions of people's rights and the role of civil government provided strong support for the intellectual movements of both revolutions. (Summary adapted from Wikipedia)

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M4B audiobook of complete book


This audio is part of the collection: The LibriVox Free Audiobook Collection
It also belongs to collections: Audio Books & Poetry; Community Audio

Artist/Composer: John Locke
Date: 2009-02-02
Source: Librivox recording of a public-domain text
Keywords: librivox; audiobook; politics; religion; political philosophy; divine right of kings; regal power; state of nature; property; government; war; slavery; monarchy; tyranny; Sir Robert Filmer; Enlightenment

Creative Commons license: Public Domain

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Reviewer: GeoffreyEdwards - - November 13, 2012
Subject: Thanks
Thank you for this recording.

Reviewer: aeontwo - - March 28, 2011
Subject: Please disregard previous review
This is an exemplary reading of a philosophical text. The first reader has a clear, beautifully modulated voice with excellent enunciation. The recording quality is fine.

The text is delivered at exactly the sort of speed needed to convey the ideas, and the reader evidently understands fully everything she narrates.

The subsequent readers also are fully competent. To give this audiobook a "lowest" rating is absurd.

Time-wasters like the previous reviewer are stupidly abusive and I only hope that the readers are not affected in the slightest by such inconsiderate rubbish and will go on using their own free time to give us superb productions like this.

Reviewer: philyflowers - - March 27, 2011
Subject: awful
The presentation is far too slowwwwww.
Do not use this unless you absolutely have to.
after I listened to the good reading of book
one by a different reader and even though
it is a dry subject still kept my attention
This reading is only good for those who
can not fall asleep......
Do not get me wrong, I do not know the reader
his pronunciation is good, but farrrrr tooooooo
slowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww................